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Cian McCarthy's Sunfast 3300 'Cinnamon Girl' from Kinsale Yacht Club is Latest Round Ireland Race Entry

9th June 2020
The Sunfast 3300 Cinnamonn Girl is the 44th entry into the Round Ireland Race The Sunfast 3300 Cinnamonn Girl is the 44th entry into the Round Ireland Race Credit: Afloat

Cian McCarthy's brand new Sunfast 3300 'Cinnamon Girl' from Kinsale Yacht Club is the latest entry into the SSE Renewables Round Ireland Yacht Race in ten weeks time.

As regular Afloat readers will know, the recently arrived Kinsale-based 3300 supplied by MGM Boats is currently being worked up to speed in her home port in West Cork. And progress appears to be very good. Keen observers saw the boat hit full speed under spinnaker at the weekend when breezes topped 30-knots in flat seas of Kinsale Harbour.

Sunfast 3300

The new marque that got a special MGM Boats unveiling at the Royal Irish Yacht Club in March is now being widely tipped as the new Olympic keelboat doublehander for Paris 2024 but for the moment, at least, McCarthy is sailing with a four or five-man crew for the 700-mile Round Ireland.

Cian McCarthy's brand new Jeanneau Sunfast 3300Cian McCarthy's brand new Jeanneau Sunfast 3300 Photo: Afloat

The Sunfast 3300 has twin rudders Photo: AfloatThe Sunfast 3300 has twin rudders Photo: Afloat

As Afloat sources recently previously revealed, this West Cork entry brings with it the prospect of a UK sistership entering the race too, in what would be a buoyant turnout for the Sunfast range if quarantine rules can be met.

The entry is the 44th and the third Kinsale boat for the ocean classic that has been rescheduled for August 22nd.

Class 40

It was some 11 years ago, when McCarthy launched his previous Cinnamon Girl, a Class 40 yacht, in preparation for the 2009 Route de Chocolat, a transatlantic race from France to Mexico as Afloat reported back then with photos here.

Published in Round Ireland, Kinsale

Round Ireland Yacht Race Live Tracker 2024

Track the progress of the 2024 Wicklow Sailing Club Round Ireland Race fleet on the live tracker above and see all Afloat's Round Ireland Race coverage in one handy link here

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Round Ireland Yacht Race Information

The Round Ireland Yacht Race is Ireland's classic offshore yacht race starts from Wicklow Sailing Club (WSC) and is organised jointly with the Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC) and the Royal Irish Yacht Club (RIYC). This page details the very latest updates from the 2008 race onwards including the race schedule, yacht entries and the all-important race updates from around the 704-mile course. Keep up to date with the Round Ireland Yacht Race here on this one handy reference page.

2020 Round Ireland Race

The 2020 race, the 21st edition, was the first race to be rescheduled then cancelled.

Following Government restrictions over COVID-19, a decision on the whether or not the 2020 race can be held was made on April 9 2020 to reschedule the race to Saturday, August 22nd. On July 27th, the race was regrettably cancelled due to ongoing concerns about COVID-19.

Because of COVID-19, the race had to have a virtual launch party at the Royal Irish Yacht Club for its 21st edition

In spite of the pandemic, however, a record entry was in prospect for 2020 with 50 boats entered with four weeks to go to the race start. The race was also going big on size and variety to make good on a pre-race prediction that the fleet could reach 60. An Irish offshore selection trial also looked set to be a component part of the 2020 race.

The rescheduling of the race to a news date emphasises the race's national significance, according to Afloat here

FAQs

704 nautical miles, 810 miles or 1304 kilometres

3171 kilometres is the estimate of Ireland's coastline by the Ordnance Survey of Ireland.

SSE Renewables are the sponsors of the 2020 Round Ireland Race.

Wicklow Sailing Club in association with the Royal Ocean Racing Club in London and The Royal Irish Yacht Club in Dublin.

Off Wicklow Harbour on Saturday, August 22nd 2020

Monohulls 1300 hrs and Multihulls 13.10 hrs

Leave Ireland and all its islands (excluding Rockall) to starboard.

It depends on the boat. The elapsed record time for the race is under 40 hours but most boats take five or six days to complete the course.

The Race Tracker is https://afloat.ie/sail/events/round-ireland/item/25789-round-ireland-yacht-race-tracker-2016-here.

The idea of a race around Ireland began in 1975 with a double-handed race starting and finishing in Bangor organised by Ballyholme Yacht Club with stopovers in Crosshaven and Killybegs. That race only had four entries. In 1980 Michael Jones put forward the idea of a non-stop race and was held in that year from Wicklow Sailing Club. Sixteen pioneers entered that race with Brian Coad’s Raasay of Melfort returning home after six days at sea to win the inaugural race. Read the first Round Ireland Yacht Race 1980 Sailing Instructions here

 

The Round Ireland race record of 38 h 37 min 7 s is held by MOD-70 trimaran Musandam-Oman Sail and was set in June 2016.

George David’s Rambler 88 (USA) holds the fastest monohull race time of two days two hours 24 minutes and 9 seconds set in the 2016 race.

William Power's 45ft Olivia undertook a round Ireland cruise in September 1860

 

Richard Hayes completed his solo epic round Ireland voyage in September 2018 in a 14-foot Laser dinghy. The voyage had seen him log a total of 1,324 sea miles (2,452 kilometres) in 54 sailing days. in 1961, the Belfast Lough Waverly Durward crewed by Kevin and Colm MacLaverty and Mick Clarke went around Ireland in three-and-a-half weeks becoming the smallest keelboat ever to go round. While neither of these achievements occurred as part of the race they are part of Round Ireland sailing history

© Afloat 2020

At A Glance – Round Ireland Yacht Race 2024

Race start: Off Wicklow Harbour on Saturday, June 22 2024

There will be separate starts for monohulls and multihulls.

Race course:  leave Ireland and all its islands (excluding Rockall) to starboard.

Race distance: is approximately 704 nautical miles or 1304 kilometres.

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